Artoffact Records, Canada’s premier electronic music record label, looks to have had a banner year in terms of releases. Still, the only recognizable name I see is Rhys Fulber, best known for his work with Front Line Assembly and Delerium. Still, it sounds like this kind of music is in Continue Reading
Synthpop
The Tear Garden – A Return
Fans of Skinny Puppy and the Legendary Pink Dots can celebrate today, as The Tear Garden—comprised of cEvin Key from Skinny Puppy and Edward Ka-Spel, the singer of the Legendary Pink Dots—has released a new single titled “A Return.” The title seems quite fitting.
Valerie Renay – Under The Oak
Though I don’t celebrate Valentine’s Day much anymore (I will be a nomad for at least a few years more), that doesn’t mean I can’t drop a digital gift on you. Berlin-based singer Valerie Renay has released a fresh new single that is sensual vocally and lyrically, underpinned by dreamy Continue Reading
Found Object – every silver lining
Well done, Found Object! The tracks on this album remind me of some of best synth-pop bands I grew up with in the 1980s. Though Tangerine Dream is referenced as an influence, I hear something different – Kraftwerk, Blancmange, a more instrumental Depeche Mode or Soft Cell seem to be Continue Reading
Mimik Banka 表情銀行 – 狗日子 (Dog Days)
One of the benefits of being in Beijing at a high-grade academy is that I run into some rather brilliant young minds who are turning me on to great local music, case in point being Mimik Banka, who listeners would compare their music favorably to acts like dream pop and Continue Reading
Okolo Poludnya – Gulyat EP
Russian band Okolo Poludnya produce a very good retro-inspired EP influenced by new wave, synthpop and post-punk.
Akiko Yano – Iroha Ni Konpeitou – LP Deluxe Edition with 4p insert and OBI strip
The ever-fantastic Wewantsounds is giving the gold-star treatment to Akiko Yano, wife of the recently departed Ryuichi Sakamoto and fine musician in her own right, collaborating with Haruomi Hosono, Yukihiro Takahashi, David Sylvian, Mick Karn, Charlie Haden, Bill Frisell, Thomas Dolby, and a host of others. From the label’s Bandcamp Continue Reading
Okolo Poludnya – Gulyat EP
Okolo Poludnya are a band out of Russia who have mastered the art of nostalgic synth-pop. Well done, and considering how old synth-pop is, it’s nice to hear bands keeping the genre sounding fresh.
Spammerheads – Tar Blood / Cement Skin
I grew up with Electronic Body Music during my high-school years when my little brother and I would go clubbing in Hollywood, and the music has stuck with me for well over three decades. Spain’s Spammerheads have made a sound that would compliment early Front Line Assembly, the harsher vocal Continue Reading
Y Bülbül – Fever
What a charmingly weird discovery this is! Yiğit Bülbül is a London-based musician whose roots are in Turkey, and this mini-album combines the experimentation of artists like Holger Czukay with the dulcet sounds of Serge Gainsbourg’s backing band in their calmer moments. A surreal release this one…